China is threatening Taiwan "nonstop" and posing a major challenge to regional peace and stability, the island's President Tsai Ing-wen said in a National Day speech Thursday.
Tsai's comments come amid a renewed push by China to internationally isolate the self-governing island democracy that it claims as its own territory by poaching its few remaining diplomatic allies.
Tsai's remarks also follow months of anti-government protests in the former British colony of Hong Kong, which reverted in 1997 to Chinese rule under the same "one country, two systems" framework Beijing says it intends to use to absorb Taiwan.
"China is using its 'one country, two systems' program to threaten us nonstop and has used all sorts of attacks and mounted virulent challenges to regional peace and stability," Tsai said in her speech at the presidential office building in the center of the capital, Taipei.
China cut off contact with Tsai's government shortly after her inauguration in 2016 because she rejects Beijing's claim to the island. She is the front-runner to win reelection next year, despite a push by Beijing to undermine her support in part by wooing the large Taiwanese business community in China.
Resistance to China was one of three goals Tsai outlined in her speech.
"We must stand up in defense," Tsai said. "Rejection of 'one country, two systems' is the biggest consensus among Taiwan's 23 million people across parties and positions." Referring to Hong Kong, Tsai said, "the failure of 'one country, two systems'" had taken Hong Kong to "the brink of disorder."